Ayo Badmus has come a long way in the movie industry. He started out as a model. Not many people knew he was one of the three orange men used by a soft drink company in 1996 to create awareness for the brand. In this interview with Adunola Oladapo,

he speaks on his experience as a model and actor among other issues. Excerpts:

As an actor of repute in the Yoruba movie industry, how your acting career start?
It all started when I came back from England. I was born in Lagos. My grandfather was born in Lagos, my mother was born in Isheri, Ikeja. Her father was born there too. Her name is Adun Edun, of the popular the Edun family.

I went to school in Lagos and at Odogbolu. I did a little bit of my Higher School Certificate (HSC) at Liberty School, so later, I left for England. I went to a college that did competitive Art in England. I worked briefly there and came to Nigeria and I joined an agency, where I worked for a while and went on my own as a freelancer.

I was a model too, not many people knew that I was a model before I started acting. That was when I joined the entertainment industry. I modelled for a while and from there I went into acting. I found out there was a future for me in acting and here I am.

For how long were you into modelling?
I modelled from 1994 to 1998. I was a top model then, here in Lagos. I was into photography modelling. We modelled for advert on billboards and for products. It was nice being a model. It was something I did everyday. I was among the models that did the three orange men back in those days. It was one of the most popular modelling jobs I did. We were well-paid and at the end of the day, it ended up in disaster.

Which disaster was that?
That time was during the military era of General Sani Abacha.  At that time that the three orange men came out, people gave us names. Some said that we were from the moon, while others said that we were sent by Americans to come and overthrow Abacha.

The way we carried out our routine as the orange men for the advert, was that we usually came down from the Apongbon bridge, people would see us coming from nowhere and would not see us when we leave. In just three minutes, we would be gone and appear in some other places.

We had a lot of training for that, it brought a lot of tension. We were painted orange to attract people to the brand.

Did Abacha send people after you?
Yes. I think they sent the SSS that they should get all the people involved in the orange men thing to Abuja. I mean this was done in Lagos and people were scared all over the country. A woman even wrote me then to say that the whole of Calabar had gone to church to repent because it was the end of the world.

People were so funny, there were too many stories attached to that orange men advert then. We were meant to go out for ten days, we were paid for the ten days, but we had to stop on the fifth day because of Abacha's men, though by that fifth day, we had achieved the purpose we set out to achieve, which was awareness for the softdrink.

This was in 1996 and  we were supposed to have a grand event to unveil the faces behind the orange men costume but we could not do it. Till now, the other two guys still remain a mystery. The fear made me reduce my modelling passion

You are one person that love your hair a lot, how did they get you to shave it all for the commercial?
They paid very well for it. You are right, I am blessed with a lot of hair and I love it. They say if you have it, flaunt it.

Which was your first movie?
My first movie was Scandal by Fidelis Duker. I was a little bit shy because it was different from modelling. In acting, you do what the script says and you bring expression, character and attitude into it.

Some time later, I began to learn on the job, which is not supposed to be so. We are meant to go to film school to be professionals because when someone is not doing so well in a movie, it makes every other good actors look bad.

Is there any reason why you do more of Yoruba movies?
It is because they are rich in our culture. I am not comfortable with the Igbo movie. We cannot speak English more than the white people and this is why I feel some of our Igbo speaking movies cannot win awards abroad. I give kudos to Yoruba movies because they are helping to preserve and sell our culture. We should export our culture and not western culture. We cannot teach the westerners how to be them.

When did it occur to you that acting is the career you can excel in?
I will say I saw the future in our entertainment industry. I knew how the movie industry started, the struggles that went into bringing it this far and where we are going, things we are yet to achieve. I knew I had to be part of the change. I knew I have something to offer.

You have put into some years in acting, are you fulfilled with the journey so far?
I am not really happy about it, but we are trying, because of the system. It’s no longer showbiz, the show is the entertainment, while the biz is the business where the money comes in, but piracy is frustrating the creative art and the hardwork.

We should go back to the big screen. We are supposed to have cinemas everywhere. I am happy that I am still here and we are getting there. The direct access of video to the audience is the main reason we have piracy.

Tell us about the fame, how does it feel being a popular actor?
Fame has its advantages and disadvantages. When I was a model, people noticed me a lot, but in acting people judge you by the roles you act in movies unlike the way you pose as a model. Most of the characters I act in movies are related to women and because of that, I made a lot of friends and a lot of enemies as well.

A lot of people find it hard to seperate my movie character from my real character. I made a lot of friends because many of them watch my movie character and believe that if they become my friend, I will help them get girls but they become disappointed when they get closer to me. They get to see a different person entirely. The good side of fame is that people appreciate you more. The bad side of fame is horrible. It’s horrible because anywhere you go in Lagos, there are boys in every corner to collect money. Sometimes, it turns violent. They come in groups and demand not less than N50,000.

Do you then disguise while going out?
Yes I do atimes, but I cannot disclose how I go out, it’s my secret.

Are you working on any movie presently?
I am going to suprise my fans soon because I have not produced my own movie before, though, it’s not a must. We are supposed to stick to where our profession lies, but I have a movie I am working on presently, a soap to be precise. I am supposed to be on set  for a movie I am featuring in.

How did you meet your wife, were you already an actor before you met her?
I was already an actor before I met her.

Was it your acting skills that attracted her?
I think so because it attracted so many ladies. To make my choice was somehow difficult, because there were so many ladies. It was very difficult because so many ladies wanted to be with me and they got carried away. At some point, I was looking for someone who do not know me at all. It was difficult and time was not on my side.

The loverboy roles you play in movies, does it only attract women?
Some of them don’t take me seriously. One actually accused me one day of being a wife snatcher and that was just in a movie. I am not a wife snatcher because I was till looking for a wife then. Some felt I was still acting and so I won’t take women serious, even when I am dead serious that I was really interested in the girl. They usually felt that I wanted to take advantage of them. I get advances from women a lot. Some that have been my fans for years still call me till date and many of them I have never met.

Why do you think they give you such roles?
I have to think for them now, I think they believe I have the personality that attracts women. Some say the way I deliver the 'I love you' line is kind of enticing and aside that, I can’t really say if there is any other reason.

Have you acted any role that got you into trouble with your wife?
So many times, not really trouble, but I have to answer a lot of questions.

Since you started acting, have you ever cheated on your wife?
Never and I don’t wish to

Will you tell us if you have?
I don't know.

How many kids do you have now?
I have two children. I still want two more

Do you see yourself retiring from acting?
No, I think I will act till I die. I may retire as a painter, because I once wanted to be an artist.